Converting Photos to Cross Stitch

One of the questions I commonly hear from crafters, whether it’s related to cross stitch, knitting or crochet, is wondering how best to convert a photo or other image (like a logo) into a pattern that they can stitch.

I don’t have a very good answer because I haven’t done a lot of this kind of work, and the free online converters I’ve used have not been that great, meaning that I had to redraw my chart even when I was using a relatively simple design.

Crewel Ghoul decided to put a few pattern generators to the test and show off her results in a blog post. She wanted to look specifically at online or app pattern makers rather than programs you have to download and focused on Stitch Fiddle, Stitchly and Floss Cross.

She designed a floral image (which you can see above) and had each generator create a design of the same size and with the same maximum number of colors. Each one is rated on a scale of 1 to 3 for accuracy of color and design, ease of use and level of customization allowed, for a possible score of 12.

You’ll have to head over there to see all her designs and the rankings of the generators, but I will tell you that they all seemed to do pretty well and if you don’t need to make a lot of patterns or have a high level of customization (say you’re only making a pattern from a photo for personal use and don’t expect to need to do so regularly) you can develop a fine pattern with just free tools or the free version of tools.

That said, the more complex the pattern you’re trying to make in terms of size, number of colors, shadows, etc., the harder it is for any program to replicate. But it’s worth taking a look at these tools to see what they can do for you.

Head over to Crewel Ghoul to read the full review and take a look at the different versions of her pattern the generators made.

[Photo: Crewel Ghoul]

How to Cross Stitch a QR Code

An Easy Way to Make Your Own Cross Stitch Charts with Text

Inkspire Studio Shops offers cross stitch patterns as well as tons of different stitch minders, scissor charms and thread organization tools.

We’ll get to all that, but since we’re mostly here for the patterns, let’s start there.

All of the patterns are in one category (called Inkspire Originals if you’re following along). There are a lot of book-themed projects and more of the designs are bookmarks than anything else. You’ll find trope bookmarks, a Reading Rainbow themed design, flowers and a super cute watercolor set bookmark, to name a few.

And while the book themed projects are by far the most numerous, I wanted to share this super cute pile of vintage Pyrex style bowls. I love the colors on this one and it should be easy to stitch because so much of it is blocks (or bowls) of a single color. This one is only available as a printed pattern, but most of them are digital.

It calls for six colors and comes out 5.6 by 6.9 inches, or 14.2 by 17.5 cm when stitched on 14 count fabric.

In addition to the bookmarks and book themed projects you’ll find a few kitchen projects and some Halloween and Christmas designs as well.

But what this shop is really about is needle minders, and there are tons of them, with all kinds of themes ranging from introverted and snarky to animal themes, food and beverages, retro designs and religious and inspiring needle minders.

If you don’t know about needle minders, these are acrylic with magnets. You stick a magnet to the back of your work, add the needle minder to the front of the work, and then it holds your sewing needle when you’re not stitching. No need for piercing your fabric or losing your needle between stitching sessions.

She also makes charms you can attach to your scissors (or use as a stitch marker if you’re a knitter or crocheter), inventory and project trackers and bags large and small to hold works in progress and other supplies. She’s also got a great collection of vintage cross stitch patterns and kits, so check out all the fun goodies at Inkspired Studio Shops.

[Photo: Inkspire Studio Shops]

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